Year 12 Business Studies Quiz

Study Notes

Topics covered include Operations, Finance, Marketing, and Human Resources, each accounting for 25% of the course.
Assessment includes multiple-choice questions (5 marks), short answer questions (10 marks), and business reports based on case studies.
Students should use case studies of global businesses (e.g., McDonald's, Qantas, Apple) to understand key business functions' roles, influences, processes, and strategies.

Operations: Input-output processes, turning inputs into outputs using the production process.
Finance: Provides, monitors, and controls financial resources for all business areas.
Marketing: Determines customer needs, creates products, identifies target markets, and implements marketing strategies to increase profit and market share (using the 4Ps + 3Ps).
Human Resources: Manages the relationship between employees and employers, aiming to achieve the business's goals.

DP1: Strategic role of operations management – cost leadership, good/service differentiation. Kia focuses on cost leadership, Rolls Royce on differentiation.
DP2: Goods and/or services in different industries. Focus on differences of standardised and customised goods, perishable and non-perishable goods.
DP3: Interdependence with other key business functions (KBF's). Operations depends on other functions like finance, marketing, and HR.

Businesses achieve cost leadership by buying inputs in bulk, using advanced technology, and standardising production (often on assembly lines).
Economies of scale reduce per-unit costs due to increased scale of operations. Successful examples include McDonald's and Qantas.

Operations can differentiate goods by features, quality, colour, augmented features.
Services can be differentiated by time spent on service, expertise level, and qualifications/experience of service provider.
Qantas uses differentiating factors such as wellness space in economy, mini-boutique hotel rooms in first class, and customisable cabin lighting.

Varied goods based on customer needs, exemplified by Subway sandwiches and McDonald's customizable burgers. Complexity of processes increases with customisation.

Mass-produced, uniform in quality, meeting predetermined standards. Economies of scale are achieved. (e.g., McDonald's fries, nuggets, Toyota cars)

Short shelf life (food, vitamins, medicines). Operations focus on quality, safety, cleanliness, short lead times, and fast distribution; robust packaging, and cold storage. Exemplified by McDonald's meat patties (bone fragments and metal scanning).

Durable (vehicles, clothes, appliances). Focus is on quality management (avoiding product recalls and safety issues), inventory management, and preventing products from becoming outdated. This includes technology and clothing.

Services can be standardized (fast food) or customized (accounting, medical). Standardized services typically use a cost leadership strategy.

Mutual reliance between four key business functions (KBFs) to meet shared goals.
Operations, marketing, finance, and human resources all depend on each other to function effectively.
Example interplay: Marketing needs operations to produce goods/services as specified; Operations needs marketing to design and forecast needed production.